


The Real Goodbye

by Bumblewish



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Inspired by a fic that I have huge respect and admiration for, Spinel is mentioned but she doesn't appear, Steven is exhasted, There's a reason the B-Team is listed in characters, Tubetube, and probably needs therapy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-16
Updated: 2020-08-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 01:22:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 1,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25156180
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bumblewish/pseuds/Bumblewish
Summary: A sixteen-year-old Steven tries to quit Tubetube but Spinel happens.Inspired by Waddles889's amazing fanfic: WELCOME BACK TO THE VLOG, steven universe here!
Comments: 1
Kudos: 18





	1. Goodbye

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [WELCOME BACK TO THE VLOG, steven universe here!](https://archiveofourown.org/works/23380708) by [Waddles889](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Waddles889/pseuds/Waddles889). 



> This started as a simple thought inspired by Waddles889's works, but it became an actual fic. 
> 
> I really love WELCOME BACK TO THE VLOG, steven universe here!, so go take a look at that as well.

Goodbye

Published May 20

It was a surprise after two years of silence since his last video. A more mature and older version of Steven with a pink jacket was holding his phone camera in a selfie-like way as he walked. The screen was also disturbed by static but it wasn’t as bad as the warp pad disturbances in the past. 

“Hi guys,” he greeted with a guilty expression. “I know it’s been about two years since I last uploaded, but after changing White Diamond’s mind, I had to take on the task of dismantling the empire.” 

Steven stopped and changed the angle of his phone, allowing his viewers to see the layout of an unknown location. It was rather classy and clean and a few unknown gems could be seen in the background. 

Steven refocused his phone’s camera on him and continued his walk. “I just finished dismantling the empire last week.” Steven smiled, his guilt briefly forgotten during his excitement. “I’m actually going home tomorrow!” 

Steven’s guilty expression then returned. “Aside from my eventual return home for the first time in two years, it’s time that I finally explain why you are seeing this right now.” 

Steven sighed before continuing. “As you can probably guess from the title, I am quitting Tubetube.” Steven paused for a moment before continuing. “This isn’t a false alarm either,” Steven pointed out, referencing the last time he said he was quitting and didn’t go through with it. 

“Please forgive me for my decision,” Steven slightly pleaded. “But with everything that has been happening, I can’t keep my channel going.” Steven remained quiet for a few more moments, making Steven’s exhaustion much more obvious. 

“However with Era 3 in place, you guys can safely meet all kinds of gems for yourself in Beach City and even Little Homeworld once construction has completed!” 

Steven smiled with a sad expression. “I had a great time making the videos and interacting with you guys in the comments. I’m going to miss you guys. Bye!”

The video ends on a bittersweet note for some viewers, but others were just concerned for their newly retired king.


	2. IMPORTANT PLEASE WATCH!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peridot attempts to do the right thing...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter may have been slightly inspired by another fic I vaguely remember reading a couple months ago. Unfortunately, I don't remember its name.

IMPORTANT PLEASE WATCH!

Published May 21

The video that was even more unexpected that the last opened up with Peridot holding what was presumably Steven’s phone. The video was unedited for the most part, but in the background, Lapis and Bismuth could be seen next to some sort of contraption with a menacingly large drill behind it. The sky was also an eerie pink hue, compared to the normal blue color it usually had. 

“You human viewers are all probably freaking out at the scene behind me, but it’s best not to panic. A crazy gem attacked the Crystal Gems this morning and wiped the memories of all but Steven. Steven has it completely under control right now!”

Peridot seemed to be getting increasingly more anxious as the video goes on. “Nyehehehe… It was a good idea to use the power of my Cheeper account and Steven’s Tubetube account to warn you clods!” 

Peridot glanced at her contraption and began to pace. “Steven should be able to get the Crystal Gems back to normal before forty-eight hours, right?” It was not easy to see, but Lapis and Bismuth tensed as they looked at each other.

Peridot trembled ever-so-slightly and stopped pacing. It is not known if this was due to the reactions from the two gems nearby or if it was the general anxiety the green gem seemed to exhibit. “If Steven were to theoretically fail,” she eventually retorted. “Then all of you human viewers should obtain as much food and water as possible and get to high ground.”

Peridot glanced back at the drill with a grim expression. “While I doubt a human would be that stupid, I advise that you do not touch any of the pink injector fluid you may find on the ground.” 

Peridot smiled uneasily. “That being said, Peridot ou-”

The video ends abruptly. So much for editing skills...


	3. The Real Goodbye

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven decides to speak up in the aftermath of Peridot's video.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you look closely, you might find some SUF foreshadowing.
> 
> I should probably mention that this fanfiction of a fanfiction pretty much diverges after CYM, but was written before CYM dropped in the fanfiction this was inspired by. 
> 
> I probably would've gotten this out earlier if I wasn't being lazy since this fanfiction was prewritten.
> 
> Now for whoever's reading this: Enjoy the final chapter!

The Real Goodbye

Published May 25

The video opened with Steven at his house, although he still had an exhausted expression. He looks significantly more rested than he did in his last Tubetube appearance. “My video, ‘Goodbye’, should have been my last video, but then I discovered Peridot’s video.” 

Steven smiled lightly. “I do appreciate Peridot’s warning to the world. However, I think she might have indirectly caused some riots in urban areas.” Steven sighed. “That’s why I have to update you guys on what happened.”

There was a starwipe and Steven is now out on the beach. Unfortunately, there was some leftover ‘injector fluid’ in the ocean. “I still have a lot of cleaning up to do, especially since the injector exploded during the fight Spinel and I had.” 

Another starwipe occurred and Steven is now on the cliff where the injector had been. There was a decently sized crater in its place. There were also a couple crevices, but there was no pink liquid to be seen. The area almost looked good as new. “This area is pretty cleaned up now,” Steven explained. “My healing spit can apparently reverse the effects of Spinel’s injector.” 

Steven smiled weakly. “Everyone’s safe! I have saved the Earth once again.” Steven then groaned. “I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve saved the Earth at this point.” Steven shook his head and sighed. “You guys kept suggesting therapy to me, but I doubt that it would help a gem like me, but thank you for suggesting it.” 

Another starwipe happened and Steven had returned to his room. “Upon rewatching ‘Goodbye’ I realized that I left out several good points.” 

Steven edited a list to the side of the screen. “First: I recommend avoiding the woods behind Beach City because Jasper lives there and she is aggressive. Two: Please don’t harass Spinel. Spinel only went after me because she was angry at my mom for abandoning her 6,000 years ago. Three: Little Homeworld’s completion date might be pushed back a few months due to a minor accident with a giant pizza cutter and what happened with the injector.”

Steven had a sad but tired look on his face. “This is the real goodbye,” he pointed out. “I will no longer be posting on my channel. Like I said before, I will miss you guys. Bye!” 

The video and the channel content end.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I originally planned the upload date to be on May 23, but I thought that would be too unrealistic and I also had to change/edit out bits of dialogue during this story. My original script just didn't feel correct.
> 
> Spinel's almost unexplained namedrop was actually intentional. This is another reference to Waddles889's fanfic.

**Author's Note:**

> I had added some underlines and italicized stuff, but I'm still a noob and I guess copy-and-pasting from my Google Docs doesn't work. I also think I might have a lot of repeated stuff in the notes because I've never written an inspired fanfic before.


End file.
